The "show don't tell" rule everyone loves is ruining short stories

I entered a flash fiction contest last month with a 500 word limit. Spent hours trying to "show" every little emotion and action instead of just saying what happened. My piece ended up feeling bloated and I cut out half the plot to fit the word count. Didn't even place in the top twenty. Meanwhile the winner just told a straightforward ghost story with simple language. I think for really short pieces, sometimes telling gets the job done faster. Anyone else break this rule on purpose and get better results?

2 comments

2 Comments

simonbell13d ago

Cannot believe you cut half the plot just to follow one rule.

the_olivia14d ago

Wow, seriously?! You put all that effort into showing and it still didn't work out? That's wild to me because I've done the exact same thing with tiny word counts, trying to "show" the character's nervousness with sweating palms and shaky breaths instead of just saying "he was scared." It's like the rule only makes sense when you have room to breathe, you know, but with 500 words you're basically fighting for every single sentence. I've had much better luck just telling the reader what's happening and saving the fancy description for one or two key moments that actually matter.